National Republican., 1887-04-11
Democratic Delusions,

Tae Hon. W. d. Hill, Democratic repre-
sentative from Ohio, has been interviewed
upon the tariff question, and from the sub
stance Of bis talk he must place very low
estimate upon the intelligence of the
American people. He pretends to believe,
or at least asks other people to believe,
that the customs duty on an article is tax
on that article to the full amount Of its
value, ard uses the following illustration
to sustain that idea:
Let us make little change in the metho1.of
collecting the customs dues and see how long
the present iniquity would stand. Instead OF
collectors Of the port who collected the tariff
duties in bulk from the importers at the ports
of entry, suppose the collection was made at
the shops and stores where the goods were sold
and from the people who buy them. Then a
government officer would stand at every store
door and examine the packages of the pur-
chaser as he came out and collect the duty
from him. A workingman would go in aud
buy, let us say, five pounds of sugar and 81
worth of woolens for his wife and babies The
prices in the store would be very reasonable.
He would get probably five pounds of good
sugar for a quarter and eight yards o. pretty
fair ilannels for So. He pays the shopkeeper
the S2.25 and starts out At the door Uncle
Sans Off cial stops him and makes him show
up his packages On the five pounds of sugar
he collects 25 cents tariff and on eight yards
Of flannel he collects 81 more tariff so that the
workingman would at once see that he had to
pay the full value of what he bought into the
government treasury in the shape OF taxes.
Then he would fully understand just how great
the burden OF unnecessary tariff taxation was
upon him. Under this system of collecting
the customs duties directly from the consumer
how long DO you suppose it would be until
there was a tariff revision?
Now In the light of common sense and
facts examine that proposal. Five pounds
OF 'good SUGAR. can be bought at any store
for 30 cents, or cents per pound, and ac-
cording to Mr.. Hill 25 cents OF this is q
tariff tax which would make the cost OF the
sugar, II It were freed from this tax, cent
per pound, or cents for the lot The
whole amount Of sugar imported In 1885
was 2,509, ,2S7,6 500 pounds and the import
value,of this sugar was $71 10000 or about
two and eight'tenths cents per pound. The
duties collected were about $4,000, 900, or
20 per cent. ad valorem. Mr.. Hill says that
- Hhbuii Soob b"O CIBuI-
tenth cents per pound at the place where
1t was raised would be imported and sold
at the country stores at cent per pound
II II were not for. the tariff.
What becomes Of Mr. Hills illustration
In the face of these figures, and OF the
further fact that sugar is cheaper now than
1t was ever known to be in this country
before, and that we import ten-elevenths
Of all the sugar used In the country9
We do not, never did, and never can i'm
port yard of flannel at 25 cents yard,
the price put by Mr.. Hin on the flannel
his "workingman" purchases, SO that the
government collector, standing at the door,
could not collect cent from the working
man" unless he was such fool as TO be
duped by such arrant nonsense as that
talked by Mr.. Hill, in which case he might
pay some sharper So, or even s., for the
privilege Of buying flannel.
II is impossible to imagine that, outside
OF home for imbeeiles, any man can be